Market Update

For the ending of April, 

U.S. existing-home sales dropped by 2.4% compared to the previous month, according to the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR). This reversal comes after a significant sales increase of 14.5% in February. The fluctuation in mortgage interest rates has caused buyers to hold back, leading to a 5.2% decline in pending sales. Additionally, the median existing-home sales price has fallen for two consecutive months, showing a 0.9% decline compared to the same time last year. This decline is the largest year-over-year drop since January 2012, as reported by NAR.

In the Twin Cities region, new listings saw a significant decrease of 27.9%, totaling 5,170. Pending sales also dropped by 28.8%, reaching 4,029. Inventory levels fell by 4.5% to 6,155 units. Prices remained relatively stable, with the median sales price experiencing a slight decrease of 0.7% to $367,500. The days on market increased by 60.7% to 45 days. Buyers found themselves in a stronger position as the months' supply of homes for sale rose by 25.0% to 1.5 months.

Nationally, the housing inventory remains tight, with only 980,000 units available for sale in April. This represents a 5.4% increase compared to the previous year, but the number of homes for sale is still lower than the same period in 2019, before the pandemic. The limited inventory continues to impact home sales, with only 2.6 months' supply of homes currently available. This scarcity leads to intense competition for properties, especially in certain price categories.